Animal Right or Animal Welfare?

Almost all of us grew up with eating meats, wearing leather clothing and going to circuses or zoos. Also, in this age and year, many of us bought our beloved pets from the pet shops and keep them at home. But, peoples don’t consider the impacts of the actions on the animals involved. For whatever, peoples will ask a question: Why should non human animal have rights? Further, peoples may have a traditional perspective where animals are put on earth to serve human being. Therefore, arguments of animal rights are not making any sense in this society.

According to Oxford Advanced Learners Dictionary (2011), animal rights defined as the rights of animals to be treated well, for example by not being hunted or used for medical research. In Asian and African countries such as Vietnam, Cambodia, Uganda and Sudan, there is still much disagreement of accepting the concept of animal rights and less disagreement of the consequences or impacts of accepting that animals have rights. Peoples tend to ignore and neglect the animal rights in this modern and well educated society which is morally wrong. By accepting the doctrine of animal rights means there is no experiments on animals, no breeding and killing animals for food, clothes and medicine, no use of animal as hard labor, no animal hunting, no selective breeding for any reason other than the benefits of the animal and no use animals for entertainment purpose (BBC, 2013). 

 

How right are animal rights? How far should we go in protecting every of the animal rights? In general, in the context of animal rights, animals are equal to human, where they should have their own life and own rights. And basically, it means that we human have no right in manipulating them, instead, leave them alone as how they are originally.

Nonetheless, how true is it that human and animal share the equality in status and every aspect of life? Are not we human are assigned as caretaker of the earth and every non-human animals? If it is so, animal rights play a big controversy here. Looking into taking care and well managing of the living animals on earth, perhaps animal welfare plays a better role than animal rights. 

 

Animal welfare means how an animal is coping with the conditions in which it lives. An animal is in a good state of welfare if (as indicated by scientific evidence) it is healthy, comfortable, well nourished, safe, able to express innate behavior, and if it is not suffering from unpleasant states such as pain, fear, and distress. Good animal welfare requires disease prevention and veterinary treatment, appropriate shelter, management, nutrition, humane handling and humane slaughter. Animal welfare refers to the state of the animal; the treatment that an animal receives is covered by other terms such as animal care, animal husbandry, and humane treatment. Protecting an animal's welfare means providing for its physical and mental needs. Ensuring animal welfare is a human responsibility that includes consideration for all aspects of animal well-being, including proper housing, management, nutrition, disease prevention and treatment, responsible care, humane handling, and, when necessary, humane euthanasia.

The ‘five freedoms’, which were originally developed by the UK’s Farm Animal Welfare Council (FAWC), provide valuable guidance on animal welfare. They are now internationally recognized, and have been adapted slightly since their formulation. The current form is: -

1. Freedom from hunger and thirst – ready access to water and a diet to maintain health and vigor.
   
   
2. Freedom from discomfort – by providing an appropriate environment including shelter and a comfortable resting area.
   
   
3. Freedom from pain, injury and disease – by prevention or rapid diagnosis and treatment.
   
   
4. Freedom to express normal behavior – by providing sufficient space, proper facilities and company of the animals own kind.
   
   
5. Freedom from fear and distress – by ensuring conditions and treatment which avoid mental suffering.

These 5 freedoms are ideal states, and it is recognized that some freedoms may conflict in a situation where animals are cared for by man e.g. the conflict between treatment (such as veterinary treatment) to cure illness/disease and freedom from fear and distress (that may be caused by the handling and procedure).

The AVMA, as a medical authority for the health and welfare of animals, offers the following eight integrated principles for developing and evaluating animal welfare policies, resolutions, and actions.

• The responsible use of animals for human purposes, such as companionship, food, fiber, recreation, work, education, exhibition, and research conducted for the benefit of both humans and animals, is consistent with the Veterinarian's Oath.
• Decisions regarding animal care, use, and welfare shall be made by balancing scientific knowledge and professional judgment with consideration of ethical and societal values.
• Animals must be provided water, food, proper handling, health care, and an environment appropriate to their care and use, with thoughtful consideration for their species-typical biology and behavior.
• Animals should be cared for in ways that minimize fear, pain, stress, and suffering.
• Procedures related to animal housing, management, care, and use should be continuously evaluated, and when indicated, refined or replaced.
• Conservation and management of animal populations should be humane, socially responsible, and scientifically prudent.
• Animals shall be treated with respect and dignity throughout their lives and, when necessary, provided a humane death.
• The veterinary profession shall continually strive to improve animal health and welfare through scientific research, education, collaboration, advocacy, and the development of legislation and regulations.

In conclusion, animal rights denote the philosophical belief that animals should have rights, including the right to live their lives free of human intervention (and ultimate death at the hands of humans). Animal rightists are philosophically opposed to the use of animals by humans (although some accept 'symbiotic' relationships, such as companion animal ownership. On the other hand, animal welfare denotes the desire to prevent unnecessary animal suffering (that, whilst not categorically opposed to the use of animals, wants to ensure a good quality of life and humane death). Perhaps, animal welfare will put things better in a well balanced state.